At the beginning of my 40-plus years of drag racing, someone with a fairly consistent car and good starting-line reflexes could win his or her share of drag races as I did on national, state, and local levels. When I first started drag racing 60-foot clocks did not exist. I can even remember running time-trials […]

This chapter explains some of the methods to correct or adjust the rear suspension of your ill-handling race car. I discuss methods to improve the car’s 60-foot times. Once those are within reason, the rest of the run will be greatly simplified. Don’t try to accomplish this by yourself. Speaking from experience you might do […]

A torsion bar is a long round spring steel bar that resists twisting and returns to its original position after being twisted, thus providing a spring action for the car. It is a form of a weight-bearing spring. Torsion-bar suspension systems were used in most Chrysler vehicles of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, Cadillac Eldorado, […]

The single A-arm suspension was designed by Earle S. MacPherson of General Motors in 1947, and is still widely used today. In contrast to a double A-arm suspension, a single A-arm suspension has the shock and coil spring combined into a single unit. This single unit uses less space allowing for more room, which is […]

Double A-arm front suspension cars are also referred to as double-wish-bone suspensions. Either name is an accurate description of the parts being discussed in this chapter. I refer to them throughout this book as A-arms. Depending upon the vehicle, they can be rather flat and triangular shaped. Looking at the physical part itself, you can […]

This chapter discusses front suspensions with straight axles utilizing leaf springs. These suspensions have fixed caster and camber, but toe can be adjusted just as with the strut or A-arm front suspensions. This style suspension was very popular in the early days of drag racing, particularly in the Gasser classes, due to its weight-saving advantage. […]

This chapter looks at muscle cars with rear suspension systems using coil springs with two upper and two lower control arms. These cars include GM intermediates built in 1964–1977 (A-Bodies), 1978–1988 (G-Bodies), 1994–1996 Impala SS cars (B-Bodies), and 1979–2004 Ford Mustangs (Fox-Bodies). Rear-wheel-drive cars with rear coil springs and two upper and two lower control […]

This chapter looks at muscle cars with rear-suspension systems using coil springs with two lower control arms and a torque tube. These factory three-link cars include GM 1982 to 2002 Camaros and Firebirds (also referred to as third- and fourth-generation F-Body cars). Since rear-wheel-drive cars with rear coil springs, two lower control arms, and a […]

Rear-wheel-drive cars with leaf springs have the same issues as their coil-sprung competitors. They must have a means to set pinion angle, preload, and get the car to launch as fast as possible. In addition, a leaf-sprung car has to deal with the issue of spring wrap-up. First I discuss some of the more popular […]

This chapter explains the basic physics occurring on the starting line when you launch your car, along with why it does (or doesn’t do) what it should. Your understanding of what is happening can give you an advantage over your competitor. Put this advantage to full use, and your car will maximize its starting-line bite. […]